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So
I'm watching the program, Gene Simmons Family Jewels, last week and in
the episode, Gene is trying to help his son Nick come up with a name for
his band and he's like "... how about Engine... as in Search Engine?" I
totally cracked up. Even Gene Simmons is on board with Search. Hmm,
what a concept, Gene Simmons and search... I really shouldn’t be
surprised as there is actually a connection between Gene Simmons, Kiss
and marketing. Love them or hate them, the band Kiss has been a
successful marketing machine since the mid-seventies. These guys have
marketed everything from Kiss toys and comic books to Kiss coffins and
more recently even a Kiss coffee house. Gene Simmons is really quite a
savvy businessman. He knows how to sell and market himself and his
band. So what does Gene Simmons have to do with search engine
marketing? Well maybe not much but it did remind me of the K.I.S.S.
acronym. (That is "Keep It Simple Stupid").
Search Engine Marketing
and the K.I.S.S Theory
More often than not, keeping things simple can often yield better
results than you may originally expect. It’s always the simple idea
that turns out to be a success story; the pet rock, bottled water, eBay,
Heelys (the running shoes with wheels on them), and more recently
the million dollar home page and
Youtube. All of these success stories started out as a simple
idea. This Keep It Simple Stupid acronym applies to search engine
marketing as well. For website owners that are just starting out,
keeping your online strategies simple may be just what the doctor
ordered. I am by no means suggesting that Search Engine Marketing is a
simple gig. The fact of the matter is that SEM is not simple and
requires a combination of marketing knowledge, time, patience and a
little luck. However looking at SEM in a simple manner with the end in
mind is a great place to begin your search marketing journey.
So
to keep with the KISS theme of this article, I have established my own
KISS acronym as it pertains to
search engine marketing.
Keep your target market in mind
Improve your online presence with sound SEM strategies
Study your online competition
Set proper metrics
Let’s look at each of these points a little further.
Keep Your Target Market
In Mind
This simple philosophy cannot be overstated as your customer is why your
business is in existence. If you don’t plan your online SEM strategy
without thinking about the needs of your target market you’re fighting a
losing battle. You need to define your target market, understand them,
learn about their needs and continue to learn about their
needs. You must reach these specific customers and satisfy their
particular needs. As an entrepreneur and marketer, you must identify
those customers and understand as precisely as possible what they want.
Improve your Online
Presence with Sound SEM Strategies
You have to work for your online presence, you can’t expect to just
appear in the top results all of a sudden. You need to work at it.
Whether it is through your keyword selections in a sponsored campaign or
via your organic optimization efforts, a sound SEM strategy can present
you with a great avenue for intercepting your target market.
Study your Online
Competition
Another simple, but important factor with regards to online success is
to know who you are competing with for the prime real estate in the
Search Engine Results. It amazes me sometimes when I ask a client about
their online competition and they mention their direct competition in a
traditional sense and forget about the online competitors who are
competing for the same valuable space in the search engine results
pages. Be aware of your online competition and study them to keep a
competitive advantage over them.
Set Proper Metrics
Yet another basic but often overlooked part of an effective search
marketing plan is to set proper metrics to track your success.
Defining proper metrics and key performance indicators may not
always be easy, but it is crucial to helping your online presence grow
and improve. Tracking the wrong metrics can be a waste of time and as a
result a costly endeavor.
Rock n Roll All Night
and Search All Day…
No
matter what industry, as marketers we sometimes forget some of the
simple things that need to be done in order to achieve success.
Sometimes we just need to step back and simplify things. Gene Simmons
may not have been successful in finding a name for his son’s band but he
has enjoyed success in a variety of areas that most of us would love to
have experienced. The band KISS started out with a simple concept (they
wanted to be the band that they never saw growing up). With all of
their theatrics, makeup and pyro, they churned out this marketing
machine and became a multi-million dollar business. It’s often the
little things that generate success. From a simple idea or concept you
can achieve great success. The same can be applied to your search
engine marketing strategies. |
enquiro research
Jody Nimetz